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Carton GTIN

Print compliant shipper barcodes directly onto your cartons and cases. Our Carton GTIN guide covers everything you need to know to label outer packaging correctly for efficient logistics and inventory management.

What is a Carton GTIN?

A Carton GTIN, also known as an ITF‑14 barcode, is a 14-digit barcode used on the outer shipping carton or case of your retail products. It is not designed for retail point-of-sale scanning but is essential for warehousing, distribution, and wholesale.

Each carton typically contains a set quantity of individual retail items – for example, a case might hold 120 bags of chips.

Key features of a carton barcode

  • Contains 14 digits
  • Encodes a GTIN-12, GTIN-13, or GTIN-14
  • Used for product groupings such as shippers, cartons, and trays
  • Printed directly onto cardboard or outer packaging
  • Does not include extra product info like batch codes or expiry dates
  • Not intended for scanning at retail POS, but may be used in wholesale environments

Benefits of carton barcodes

  • Simple, robust design with bearer bars for enhanced scannability
  • Reliable printing directly onto corrugated cardboard
  • Helps retailers track stock through distribution and warehousing
  • Can be used at wholesale POS for grouped products

Understanding Carton GTIN specifications

  • Encodes GTIN only — no attributes like batch numbers or expiry dates
  • Minimum bar height: 32 mm
  • Orientation: Must be printed upright in “picket fence” orientation
  • Magnification requirements:
    • When printing directly onto corrugated cardboard, use 80%–100% magnification
    • If printing at less than 80%, use a print-and-apply label with magnification between 50%–100%
  • Bar width ratio (wide to narrow):
    • Target ratio: 2.5:1
    • Acceptable range: 2.25:1 to 3.0:1
  • Bearer Box:
    • Heavy bars surrounding the symbol improve scanning by preventing partial (short) reads
    • Required when pre-printing onto fibreboard
    • For on-demand printing, only top and bottom bearer bars are required — each at least 1 mm thick
  • Human Readable Interpretation (HRI):
    • Must appear directly beneath the barcode
    • Show all digits encoded in the symbol
  • Quiet Zones:
    • Mandatory clear space on both the left and right sides of the barcode

Common scenarios for using carton barcodes

  • Retailer distribution centres
  • Wholesale POS
Retailer distribution centres

When cartons arrive at a retailer’s warehouse or distribution centre, the ITF‑14 barcode is scanned to identify the contents. This barcode communicates how many consumer units are inside the carton (e.g. 120 snack packs), enabling accurate stock tracking in the retailer’s inventory system.

Wholesale POS

If you're selling full cartons directly to customers at a wholesale POS, you’ll need to label the carton with both:

  • an EAN-13 barcode for retail scanning
  • and the ITF-14 barcode for distribution and handling

This ensures your packaging meets scanning and tracking requirements for both retail and logistics operations.

Carton Barcode Implementation Checklist

  • Assign a valid GTIN
    • Use a unique GTIN for each product and packaging level
    • When encoding a GTIN-13 or GTIN-12 into an ITF-14, add filler zeros at the front to create a 14-digit number
  • Choose the right print method
    • Print directly onto cardboard if there’s enough space for correct magnification
    • If not, use print-and-apply labels with compliant sizing
    • Do not use inkjet for ITF-14 barcodes — most retailers won’t accept them
  • Apply correct barcode placement
    • Position the bottom of the barcode 32 mm from the base of the carton
    • Keep Quiet Zones at least 19 mm away from any vertical carton edge
    • Make sure barcodes are fully visible and not obscured by packaging or flaps
  • Conduct barcode checks
    • Carton barcodes must be in upright (picket fence) orientation
    • Ensure barcodes on inner retail units cannot be scanned through the outer packaging
    • Include the Bearer Box when pre-printing directly onto fibreboard
    • Confirm all barcodes are scannable and meet retailer verification requirements
      For example, some retailers (e.g. Woolworths) require a barcode verification report before accepting your products, and then every 12 months

FAQs

Which GTIN should I include on my carton barcode?

To choose the right number for your ITF‑14 carton barcode, start by asking: Will the carton or its contents be sold at retail point-of-sale?

  • Yes → Use a GTIN‑13
  • No → Use a GTIN‑13 or GTIN‑14, depending on the application

GTIN-14 is used when the carton contains identical units of the same product — such as 12 identical bottles of juice. It’s designed specifically for groupings of the same item in outer cartons or cases.

How do ITF-14 and GS1-128 barcodes differ?

The ITF-14 barcode is used to encode the GTIN only. It’s ideal for printing directly onto corrugated cardboard and is commonly used for trade units like cartons and cases.

In contrast, the GS1‑128 barcode is required when you need to include additional data, such as:

  • Use-by or best-before dates
  • Batch or lot numbers
  • Serial numbers

GS1-128 offers more flexibility for detailed traceability and inventory control, especially in regulated industries like food, healthcare, and logistics.

What are the standard barcode types used on cartons?

Carton barcodes typically use one of the following formats:

  • ITF-14 – encodes only the GTIN and is ideal for printing directly onto corrugated cardboard
    GS1-128 – encodes the GTIN plus additional data like use-by dates or batch numbers

Note: These barcodes are not designed for POS scanning. If the carton or its contents will be scanned at checkout, include an EAN‑13 as well.

What is the minimum height of a carton barcode?

For General Distribution (automated scanning) environments, the minimum bar height for both ITF-14 and GS1-128 barcodes is 32 mm.

In non-automated environments, bars should be printed as tall as possible to ensure reliability. The absolute minimum bar height is 13 mm.

For GS1-128 in non-automated environments, aim to get as close to 32 mm as possible.

How wide should a GS1-128 barcode be?

The size of a GS1-128 barcode depends on:

  • The X-dimension (module width)
  • The number of encoded characters
  • Whether the data includes non-numeric characters

For automated scanning, the X-dimension must be between 0.495 mm and 1.02 mm (magnification: 48.7%–100%).

For other environments, the range is 0.25 mm to 0.495 mm (25%–48.7%).

What size should an ITF-14 barcode be?

For automated General Distribution, the X-dimension should be 0.495 mm to 1.02 mm (magnification: 48.7%–100%).

In other scanning environments, it can range from 0.25 mm to 0.495 mm (25%–48.7%).

Barcodes with magnification below 62.5% (X-dimension 0.64 mm) should not be printed directly onto corrugate. Always aim for the higher end of the range when possible.

How many barcodes should be printed on a trade unit?

The answer depends on how the barcode is applied:

  • Using a label: At least one ITF-14 barcode is required, but two are recommended by many retailers.
    Directly onto board: Apply two barcodes minimum. Some retailers may require up to six for optimal visibility and scannability.

Always check your trading partners’ barcode policies.

What is the longest a GS1-128 barcode can be?

The maximum length of a GS1-128 barcode, including Quiet Zones, is 165 mm.

When concatenating data strings (combining data elements), the maximum character count is 48. This:

  • includes Function 1 Symbol Characters (FNC1) separators
  • excludes auxiliary characters and the Symbol Check Character (Modulo 103 check digit)

Keeping within these limits ensures compliance with GS1 standards and maintains barcode readability across supply chains.

Where should carton barcodes be placed?

Best practice is to print or apply at least two barcodes on adjacent carton sides to ensure scanning efficiency.

Positioning guidelines:

  • The bottom of the vertical bars must be 32 mm above the carton base
  • Quiet Zones and bearer bars must be at least 19 mm from any vertical edge

Retailer preferences may vary, so confirm specific requirements with your partners.